SAO Funding Drive

Following the suggestion on one of our newest alumni members, the Swinburne Alumni Association in conjunction with SAO launched a funding drive in January 2007. The funding drive aims to raise at least AU$20,000 to help fund two main projects: "AstroFest", an annual mini-conference open to all SAO students, alumni and teaching staff, and research projects headed by Swinburne astronomers.

It has been suggested for some time now that SAO should organise a series of face-to-face gatherings in various countries around the world so that the SAO community can come together and actually meet each other! Due to the generous support of SAO alumni, who have so far raised over AU$8,000, we're pleased to annouce that we can run the inaugural AstroFest this year, which will be held in Texas, USA, in October 2007. In 2008, another AstroFest will be held in (or around) Melbourne to coincide with the Swinburne centenary.

SAO alumni and students have also expressed an interest in helping fund fundamental astronomy research and so, depending on how much money is raised in the funding drive, we could also support various research projects by, for example, helping to pay for observing trips or journal page changes. All SAO supported research projects would be fully acknowledged in any publications and results would naturally be disseminated back to the SAO community.

If you would like to donate to the SAO funding drive, please contact Swinburne Alumni.